Winged rotary kite

ABSTRACT

This invention relates to a winged rotary kite which has its lift power generated by wind driven rotors and is adaptable for use under normal conditions without the need for a tail, the kite comprising a finlike body to provide directional stability; a member attached to the body for connecting a flexible towline thereto; a wing mounted on and bisected by the body; a pair of axles connected to the distal ends of the wing and extending upwardly therefrom; and a rotor rotatably mounted on each axle, each rotor being spaced a distance above the wing, whereby the rotor as it passes over the wing is maintained in turbulent air rather than in direct airflow thus obtaining less drag on the rotor as it passes over the wing, as compared to the drag on the rotor when it is not over the wing, and by this arrangement causing the turbulent air to be dispersed inwardly from below each rotor toward the fuselage where it is then dumped rewardly, enabling the kite to maintain pitch and vertical stability.

United States Patent [72] Inventor Lynn D. Richardson 111 Lynn Ave, Ames, Iowa 50010 [21] Appl.No. 807,247 [22] Filed Mar.14,1969 [45] Patented Junel,l971

[S4] WINGEDROTARY KITE 7 Claims, 6 Drawing Figs.

[52] U.S.Cl 244/154 [51] lnt.Cl B64c3l/06 [50] Field oiSearch 244/154, 153, 155; 46/47, 51,53, 74, 75

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,472,290 6/1949 Fernstrum 244/154 2,675,199 4/1954 Aylor 244/154 3,022,967 2/1962 Romeo 244/154 36 33 Lat/jg [737 32 AQA Primary ExaminerMilton Buchler Assistant Examiner--Paul E. Sauberer Attorney-Henderson & Strom ABSTRACT: This invention relates to a winged rotary kite which has its lift power generated by wind driven rotors and is adaptable for use under normal conditions without the need for a tail, the kite comprising a finlike body to provide directional stability; a member attached to the body for connecting a flexible towline thereto; a wing mounted on and bisected by the body; a pair of axles connected to the distal ends of the wing and extending upwardly therefrom; and a rotor rotatably mounted on each axle, each rotor being spaced a distance above the wing, whereby the rotor as it passes over the wing is maintained in turbulent air rather than in direct airflow thus obtaining less drag on the rotor as it passes over the wing, as compared to the drag on the rotor when it is not over the wing, and by this arrangement causing the turbulent air to be dispersed inwardly from below each rotor toward the fuselage where it is then dumped rewardly, enabling the kite to maintain pitch and vertical stability.

. 1 wmcen ROTARY KITE BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION This invention relates generally to kites and particularly to kites of the rotor propelled variety.

Various types of rotor propelled kites are known and are exemplified in US. Pat. Nos. 2,472,290, 2,675,199, and 2,987,280. Generally, all of the prior art structures have in common an elongated fuselage, a crossmember attached to the fuselage, a pair of rotors rotatably mounted directly to the extended ends of the crossmembers, and a tail unit connected to the fuselage to provide vertical and horizontal stabilization of the kit.

The rotary kite of this invention obviates the need for a tail unit by raising the rotors above the. wing so as to place the rotors in the turbulent air formed above the wing to thereby effect a higher drag on the outside and front of the dish formed above the wing by each of the rotors to providevertical and pitch stability for the kite.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to a tailless winged, rotor propelled kite comprising. an elongated, thin, flat fuselage; a wing mounted on and bisected by the fuselage; a pair of rotors having a hub; a pair of upwardly extending members connected to the outer ends of the wing to rotatably mount the rotors with the hub of each rotor spaced above and innoncontacting relation to the wing; and a memberconnected to the fuselage for attaching a towline thereto.

It is an object of this invention toprovidean improved rotor propelledkite.

It is another object of this invention to provide a rotor propelled kite which is operable under normal conditions without the need fora tail element.

It is yet another object of this invention to provide a finlike fuselage adapted to provide directional stability for the kite.

It is still another object of this invention-to-provide a rotary propelled kite having an inherent construction capable of maintaining the kite at a optimumangle of attack.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a towline connection to'a kite wherein an easy and quick adjustment can be made to compensate forvariations-in wind velocity.

It is still a furtherobject of this invention to provide a rotor propelled kite which is simple to use, economicalto manufacture, and rugged inconstruction.

These objects and other features andadvantagesof the rotored propelled kite of this invention willbecome readily apparent upon reference to the following description when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THEDRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a front elevational view of the kite of thisinvention;

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the kite;

FIG. 3 is a side elevational view showingthe kite in its normal angle of attack;

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary side view of a rotor as--taken along the line M ofFIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is a fragmentary side elevational view as taken along the line 5-5 of FIG. 4; and- FIG. 6 is a fragmentary side elevational view of a modification of this invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THEE-REFERRED EMBODIMENT Referring now. to the drawings-and particularly to FIG. 1, the rotor propelled kite of this invention is indicated generally by thenume ral 10. The. kite 10 generallyincludesa fuselage 11, a wing 12 mountedon. the fuselage 11 and bisected thereby, and a pair of rotors 13 and-14 .rotatably. mounted above the wing .12 bya pair .of members 16 and. 17 extending upwardly from the wing 12 adjacent theouter ends.18 and 19 thereof.

The fuselage 11 (FIGS. 1 and 3 is an elongated finlike body formed by a thin, flat, lightweight material. In side view (FIG. 3), the fuselage 11 has a substantially triangular shape.

The wing 12 (FIGS. 1 and 2) is attached to the fuselage 11 adjacent the top edge 21 thereof and is shaped with a positive dihedral angle of about 5 to about 20 between the bisected wing portions 22 and 23 thereof. The wing 12 is provided with a pair of elongated braces 24 and 26 extending transversely of the fuselage 11, which braces 24 and 26 are secured to the top side 28 of the wing 12.

The rotors 13 and 14 (FIG. 1) are disposed above the wing 12 and are identical, therefore only one rotor 14 will be fully described. The rotor 14 includes a hub 29 having an aperture (not shown) centrally formed therein for rotatably mounting the rotor 14 to the mounting member 17 as hereinafter described.

A plurality of blades of 31 and 32 (FIGS. 4 and 5), each havinga slight fixed pitch, are rigidly connected to the hub 29 and radially extend therefrom. The blades 31 and 32 may be secured to the hub 29 with a slightly negative angle of incidence, for example less than 10 and with a positive dihedral angle of less than 20. However, the angle of incidence is important only under low wind conditions since when the wind is of normal velocity, the air drag on the rotor 14 will tend to arch the blades 31 and 32 upwardly. To retard the arching, a plurality of elongated support members 33 and 34 are provided. Each support member 33 and 34 extends radially from the hub 29 to approximately one-third the length of the blades 32 and 33 respectively, and attaches, as with glue, to the top surfaces 36 and 37 of the blades 31'and 32 respectively.

The blades'31 and 32 (FIGS. 1 and 2) are of a length slightly less than the wing portions 22 and 23, such that when mounted, as hereinafter described, the rotating. blades 31 and 32 of the rotors 13'and 14 do not travel an intersecting path (dotted lines, FIG. 2).

The rotors 13 and 14 (FIG. 1) are mounted above the wing 12 by a'pair of identical mounting members 16 and 17 and for purposes of brevity, only one member 17 will be described. The mounting member 17 includes an L-shaped rod extended upwardly through the wing 12 and connected thereto by a conventional bead fastener 38, embracing one end (not shown) of the member 17, and abutting the top surface 28 of the wing 12.

The elongated arm 41 of'the L-shaped member 17 projects upwardly from the wing 12 adjacent the outer end 19 thereof to form an axle upon which to mount the rotor 14. When viewed in front elevation (FIG. 1), the axes of the extended arm or axle 41 extends normal to the wing 12, and since the wing 12 is mounted at a positive dihedral angle, the axes of the axle 41 of the members 16 and 17 are inclined upwardly to converge on the vertical plane passing through the fuselage I 1.

To mount the rotor 14 (FIGS. 1 and 4) to the axle 41, a spherical bead 42 or the like is provided. The bead 42 is snuggly secured to the axle at a predetermined height above the top surface 28of the wing 12. Stated anothcrway, the rotor 14 is spaced above the wing 12 by the bead 42 approximately one-fourth the length of the wing end 19 from the fuselage. 1 1.

Once the bead 42 (FIGS. 4 and 5) is appropriately spaced and secured to the axle 42, the rotor 14 is mounted on the axle 42 through the aperture (not shown) formed in the hub 29, with the bottom surfaces of the hub 29 resting upon the bead 42. The rotor is then secured by a second conventional bead fastener 44 at the extended end (not shown) of the axle 41.

A connection member 46 (FIGS. 1 and 3) provided to attach the kite 10 to a flexible tow line 47. The connection member is formed of a screw-eye or the like and is securely connected to the leading edge 48 of the fuselage 11.

In operation, the kite 10 is launched by the operator running toward the oncoming wind and pulling the towline 47 attached to the kite 10 with him, at the same time paying out the towline 47 as the kite l rises. With the parts arranged and positioned as hereinbefore described, the kite substantially assumes a position best illustrated in FIG. 3 with the wing 12 tilted upward, thereby giving the rotors l3 and 14 a high angle of attack of approximately 45 to 60 relatively to the horizontal direction of the wind. As the wind strikes the rotors 13 and 14, they commence to rotate rapidly causing a circular area or dish" to form (dotted lines, FIG. 2) which tends to prevent the flow of air upwardly and through the "dish." To accomplish a higher lift on the outside of the dish" as compared to the lift on the inside thereof nearest the fuselage 11, the rotors are spaced above the wing as described hereinbefore, and whereby the wing in effect blanks out a portion of the dish" from below as best illustrated in FIG. 2. This location of the rotors places them in turbulent air rather than in direct wind flow thereby maintaining a higher drag on the outer and front areas of the dish of each rotor, and causing the air to dump inwardly of the dishes" at the fuselage 11, thereby obtaining vertical and pitch stability normally obtained on other kites and the like by tail surfaces.

A modification of the present invention is illustrated in FIG. 6, with like numerals indicating like parts. The modified kite 10' includes a modified fuselage 11' having an extension member 51 coextensive with the top edge 21 of the fuselage ll and extending axially forward therefrom, and a straight leading edge 52. The leading edge 52 connects to the top edge 21 immediately forward of the wing 12 and extends therefrom to connect to the forwardmost end 53 of the bottom edge 34 of the fuselage l l.

The extension member 51 is provided with an eyelet 56 or the like for connecting one end 57 of a flexible chord 58 to the fuselage 11'. A second eyelet 59, similar to eyelet 56, is secured to the leading edge 52 of the fuselage 11' adjacent the end 53 of the bottom edge 54 thereof for connecting the opposite end 61 of t the chord 58 to the fuselage 11'. The chord 58 may be of any suitable length, but it has been found that a length at least 1 inch longer then the distance between the eyelets 56 and 59 is most satisfactory.

The towline 47 is attached to the chord 58 by a slip knot 62, or the like, such that the towline 47 may be selectively moved along the chord 58 between the eyelets 56 and 59 to compensate for various wind velocities and maintain the kite 10 at the optimum angle of attack. Thus, it has been found that when wind velocities are high, the optimum angle of attack is best maintained by connecting the towline 47 to the lower portion of the chord 58, while a low or normal wind velocity would require a towline 47 attachment approximately midway between the chord ends 57 and 61. In all other respects, the arrangement and operation of the modified kite 10' is similar to the kite l0 hereinbefore described and hence requiring no reiteration.

Although a preferred embodiment and a modification of the winged rotor kite of this invention has been hereinbefore fully described, it is to be remembered that various alterations and modifications can be made thereto without departing from the invention as defined in the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A winged rotor kite comprising:

a tailless fuselage comprising an elongated, thin, flat member;

a wing mounted on and bisected by said fuselage;

a pair of rotors, each rotor including a hub;

means for mounting a rotor at each outer end of said wing,

said hub of each rotor spaced above and in noncontacting relation to said wing; and

means connected to said fuselage for attaching a towline thereto.

2. A winged rotor kite as defined in claim 1, wherein said fuselage has a substantially triangular shape.

3. A winged rotor kite as defined in claim 2 wherein said wing has s slightly positive dihedral angle.

4. A winged rotor kite as defined in claim 3 wherein each of said rotors include a plurality of blades, each of said blades havin a slight itch.

5. 1% winge rotor kite as defined in claim 4 wherein said blades connect to said hub to form a slightly positive dihedral angle.

6. A winged rotor kite as defined in claim 4 wherein said rotor mounting means include a pair of elongated axles extended normal to said wing and secured thereto, and axes of said axles extending convergingly upward.

7. A winged rotor kite as defined in claim 1 wherein said towline connecting means includes a flexible member. 

1. A winged rotor kite comprising: a tailless fuselage comprising an elongated, thin, flat member; a wing mounted on and bisected by said fuselage; a pair of rotors, each rotor including a hub; means for mounting a rotor at each outer end of said wing, said hub of each rotor spaced above and in noncontacting relation to said wing; and means connected to said fuselage for attaching a towline thereto.
 2. A winged rotor kite as defined in claim 1, wherein said fuselage has a substantially triangular shape.
 3. A winged rotor kite as defined in claim 2 wherein said wing has s slightly positive dihedral angle.
 4. A winged rotor kite as defined in claim 3 wherein each of said rotors include a plurality of blades, each of said blades having a slight pitch.
 5. A winged rotor kite as defined in claim 4 wherein said blades connect to said hub to form a slightly positive dihedral angle.
 6. A winged rotor kite as defined in claim 4 wherein said rotor mounting means include a pair of elongated axles extended normal to said wing and secured thereto, and axes of said axles extending convergingly upward.
 7. A winged rotor kite as defined in claim 1 wherein said towline connecting means includes a flexible member. 